Apparatus for treating boilers and boiler-feed water



' July 3, 1928. v 1,676,134

R. E. COUGHLAN APPARATUS FOR TREATING BOILERS AND BOILER FEED WATER Filed Feb. 16, 1925 EQUOHZHT? jfobcflf l. 0 Man;

"Patented July 3, 1928.

ROBERT 'coue r gnn,

or CHICAGO, I LINOIS;

APPARA'rus ron TnEA'rrne BoILnRsA-Nn BOILER-FEED WATER.

Application filed February This invention relates to apparatus for, treating boilers and boiler ,feed water. for the purpose of "correctingthe water cand gpreventing or eliminating the :incrustation or I 5 corrosion iof'the interior ofthe boileror boiler tubes caused by unsuitable feed water."

I As is welLknown, the treatment of boiler feed water for locomotives is usually. effected in a softening plant located at the roundhouses; oradjacent to the railroad right'of way; it sometimes being impractical to furnish all the water "supply stations 7 along the .line --with water-softening equipment. Hence, locomotives-ifrequently have to be laid-0E to. permit cleaning out orrenewing parts-got the boiler :to3free the boiler of corroded parts or of the mineralincrustations caused by the use of more or less "untreated hard waterinjthe boiler, v h

One object of my presentinvenition, is to provide a simple and eflicien't water treat ing device that, when employed in. locomo-f tive use, may be mounted on the feed pip e of the locomotive itself "so as to insure the 2 treatment of all water that goes into the boiler; Another object-is-to provide a simpleand inexpensive water-treating tank adapted to contain a suitable chemical, which may be directly, interposed in, and in part constitute a section of, the feed pipe and be at all times in free communication through a single inflow and outflow duct with the latter. Still another object of the invention is to provide a water-softening device of such a nature that the solution of the chemical or chemicalstherein shall be facilitated by the pulsations of the feed water caused by the feedpump or other injector acting through an air cushion created 40 in the chemical-containing tank. c

Other objects and attendant advantages of the invention will be apparent to persons,

16', 1925. Serial 11099390.

herein shownv as for-med integral and line 3-.3 of Fig.2. is .1

Referring to the. drawing, atank preferably of caststeel or'any'other suitable 'material of suflicientstrength to safely jwithstandboiler pressure located any therewith a Fig. 3. is a verticalcross-section on "the Y 5 designates place on. the ,feed line-betweenthe' boiler check and the feed water injector or pump. As shown, this tank. is, of substantially cylindricalform and is made at its ends with tapped: openings 6 through which any suitable water treating chemical may be intro-- 'duced into the tank;fsaidv openings-being.

normally closed by threaded plugs 7,'or.anysimilar fittings usedit'or such purposes...

Below the :tank 5 and preferably cast inv tion 8, likewise provided, with tapped ,holes 19 in; its ends to-gflr'eceive the threaded ends of pipes 10. and 11 which 'constitutepartsiof' tegral therewith is ahollfow cylindricalfisecthe boiler feed pipeleadin'girom the usual feed pump, or injector .(not shown). In the construction shown, f the lower cylinder ,8- manifestly becomes "a part or section of the boiler feed pipe; the-water flowing therearrows. a

Integral with the bottom of the cylinder I i 5 is'an upstanding nipple 12 preferably reaching .to about mid-height of the cylinder and preferably inclined toward one of the openings 6 to facilitate inspection and cleaning through said opening when required. v 7

Provision is made-for draining the tank'5 Whennecessaryby a drain pipe 13 entered into a laterally ofiset level portion 5 of the bottom of the tank; said drain opened and closed by a cook 14.

Thistank may be located anywhere on or adjacent'to the feed line, between the boiler check and the feed water or pump.

In-the use of the apparatus, the tank 5 having been charged with suitable chemipipe being through in the directionindicated by the injector cals orother material for treating the water or the interior of the boiler, the tank is closed bythe plugs 7 when the feed water injector or pumpis put into operation, part of the feed water rushes into the tank through the nipple 12, dissolving the mate'- .rialhtherein, and compressing the body of cally treated Water returns through the nipple 12 into the main line of flow and passes thence into the boiler to'effectuate thepur poses of the device. Y

From the foregoing itwill he-seen th'at, as applied to locomotive practice, the present invention presents a distinct improvement upon both water softening'plantsand boilerclcan-out plantslocated at-fixed division or other points along theline, in that it constitutes part of'thelocomotive equipment and insures that all of the water going into the boiler shall he treated either for purposes of correcting the water or for pur'- poses o1 eliminating scale previously formed in the boiler or retardingcorrosion. The invention thus saves the time commonly lost in laying .uplocomotives in: the y roundhouse for necessary 'hoiler conditioningn WVhile I haveherein-shown the de'vice as made in a single piece conveniently adapted for insertion directly in the lhoile-rfeed pipe, it is manifestthat the tank 5 may be made without the teedpipe section 8, and connect- 7 edby a'suitable pipe connection having an fic structural detailsmayfbe varied from;

upwardly projecting nipplesuch as 12 to the feed pipe. In other'respects also the specithose shown without departing from the principle or sacrificing any 01 the advantages of the invention.

I may also mention that while the device of my invention is peculiarly well adapted to locomotive practice, it may manifestly be employed to the same advantage as an accessory of stationaryboiler s. I

1 claim- 1. In a device of the character described, the combination with a feed Water pipe, oi a tank to contain material-tor feed water or boiler treatmentv provided with a normally closed filling opening, said tank formed on its lower sideiwith anintegral hollow elongated inemberadapted to he in terposed-in, and form a part of, said'feed water pipe, and a nipple extending from said hollow member upwardly into said'tank and inclined toward said'opening, to facilitate the cleaning-of said .nipple through said opening. 1- l 2. In a device of the character described, the combination-with a feed water pipe, of a closed tankfto contain material for feed water or boiler treatment, said tank formed on its lower-side with an-integral hollow elongated extension adapted to beinterposed in said feed water pipe between the feed pump or injector and the boiler check-valve;

and constitute a-section of said pipe, and a I nipple having an unrestricted flow passage extending from said hollowextension upwardly into said tank, and serving both the" inflow and return flow of water'to" andfroin.

said tank. I v

ROBERT E. COUGHLAN. 

